Dricus Du Plessis admits wrestling 'did suck' after UFC OKC win

Dricus Du Plessis owned the wrestling gaps exposed in his loss to Khamzat Chimaev after bouncing back with a dominant decision over Kamaru Usman at UFC Oklahoma City.

Du Plessis hurt Usman in nearly every round Saturday night and stuffed most of the former welterweight champion's takedown attempts across 25 minutes. The defensive wrestling improvements marked a clear upgrade from UFC 319, where Chimaev controlled him on the mat for most of five rounds. "After that fight, my wrestling did suck," Du Plessis said on the Paramount Plus post-show, per MMA Mania. "I looked at that and I'm like, 'You suck, bro. What are you doing?' It's my fault. You have to take that responsibility, and we as a team took that responsibility, and we fixed that."

Du Plessis leaned on faith after Chimaev setback

The South African middleweight admitted the Chimaev defeat sent him into a confidence spiral amplified by social media criticism. He credited his family, coaches, and faith for pulling him through. "I had a couple of weeks where the confidence, how do you stay confident?" he said. "You're not only getting bullied at school. You go home and you get bullied on Facebook. You get bullied on social media, everywhere you go." Du Plessis said his Christian faith gave him strength no person could provide, adding that his responsibility to young South African fans who look up to him forced him to get back up.

Du Plessis collected a Fight of the Night bonus for the Usman performance and walked away with the assurance he could strike freely without fearing takedowns. Whether the wrestling holds against other top middleweights is the next test, but the self-doubt appears gone. Du Plessis is now positioned for another title run at 185 pounds after nearly a year out of the cage.

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• MMA Mania — Dricus Du Plessis reflects on Khamzat Chimaev loss after UFC Oklahoma City win: ‘My wrestling did suck’